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Shasta State Historic Park Tour

Explore the remains of the "Queen City" of California’s northern mining district while learning about the gold rush

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Difficulty: Easy

Length: 1 miles

Duration: 1-3 hours

Family Friendly

Overview :
Six miles west of Redding a row of old, half-ruined, brick buildings remind passing motorists that Shasta City, the lusty "Queen ... more »City" of California’s northern mining district, once stood on this site. These ruins and some of the nearby roads, cottages, and cemeteries are all silent but eloquent vestiges of the intense activity that was centered here during the California gold rush.

Iron shutters still swing on massive, old, iron hinges before the doors and windows of grass-filled, roofless buildings that once were crowded with merchandise, and alive with the human sounds of business, trade, and social endeavor.

The County Courthouse is restored to its 1861 appearance, the year when it was converted from commercial uses to become the Shasta County Courthouse. Today the building is filled with historical exhibits, and an unparalleled collection of historic California Artwork that make it the central figure of Shasta State Historic Park less «

Tips: Location-Directions
The park is six miles west of downtown Redding. Highway 299 passes through the town’s main street.

... more »Seasons/Climate/Recommended Clothing
Summer and spring are warm; fall and winter can be cool. Layered clothing is advised. less «

Points of Interest

1. History lesson part 1 - Rise

Placards posted by each of the brick storefronts detail the history of the town.

In sum, Shasta occupied a strategic location in 1850s California. Reading Springs was located 5 miles from where Pierson B. Reading discovered gold. By 1849, gold in the nearby streams ran out. Miners moved to sites in Siskiyou and Trinity Mountains. But because of ... Morethe region’s rugged terrain, Shasta was as far west as stagecoaches and freight wagons could travel. It became the starting point for the pack trains that supplied the miners. Swiftly, the community of tents and temporary structures grew into a town with bakeries, saloons, a grocery, a brewery, and a bookstore.Less

2. History lesson part 2 - Fall

Placards by the storefronts detail the history of the town

In sum, Shasta rebuilt its commercial district in brick after fire twice devastated the wooden town. In 1872,the railroad arrived in Redding. As Redding became the new commercial center for Northern California, Shasta's population declined. By the 1930s, the structures on this street were... More falling apart.Less

3. The Litsch General Store

Frank Litsch, a German native, arrived in Shasta in 1853. Trained as a baker, he also mined and bartended before establishing the Litsch General Store in 1873. The building he chose had been constructed in 1856 with fireproof elements such as brick, iron shutters, stout roof beams, and a soil covered roof. Most canned goods sold at Litsch's store ... Morefor $0.25; whisky ranged in price from $0.75 to $1.75 a bottle. Litsch's Sacramento- and San Francisco-based suppliers handled his gold dust shipments.Less

Henry Blumb operated a bakery, with saloon, from 1878 to 1919. The building was reconstructed in 1992 to match its 1880s appearance. Schoolchildren and weekend visitors often enjoy historic baking in the faithfully reconstructed brick oven.

5. Washington Brewery

Established in 1855

6. Coyle-Foster Barn

The barn was built in the late 1850s by Thomas and Mary Coyle. It was used to shelter horses at the Holland House Hotel, on the road to Oregon. In 1959, its original site was flooded by the construction of Trinity Dam, so the barn was dismantled then reassembled at Shasta State Historic Park.

Mining and agricultural machinery on display includes... More arrastra stones that pulverized gold-laden quartz; a core drill, which allowed hard-rock miners to extract mineral samples from underground; a feed wagon used to feed farm animals; a hay baler, and a hay press.Less

7. Courthouse museum

The Courthouse museum includes many historical exhibits. Visitors can view the Boggs collection of art, assembled by a former resident; tour an entertainment room, set up with period furniture; walk down a corridor lined with transportation exhibits; and hear the narrative of townsfolk, including a succcessful former slave and a less-lucky jail... More inmateLess

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